Fatal Attraction
by ohsoalisonking
Summary: After a fatality close to home, Sandra finds a new romance.
1. Chapter 1

Sitting in front of the whiteboard, looking at all the written information and photographs, Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman wondered how she coud be so unlucky in love again. DCI James Larson; the 'babe magnet' as Gerry had described him. The first time she had fallen for him he was married and told her he was getting a divorce in order to be with her. Only, when the decree nisi didn't come through, she found out that he hadn't even put in for it. And just when Sandra had fallen for James all over again, she ended up being part of the team that arrested him for handling stolen goods.

Gerry was angry that Sandra hadn't been straight with him about what Larson was doing and left the office with the hump. Brian, still fretting about what Esther was doing, planned to home to resurrect some of his possessions that may be about to be sold online, after stopping off at the pub with Gerry. That just left Jack and Sandra in the office.

"Drink?" Jack asked.

"Only if it's something incredibly alcoholic!" she answered.

Jack headed to his desk and pulled out a large bottle of wine. Sandra nodded and half smiled, words failed her.

"I've been such an idiot Jack" Sandra began. "I fell for him twice...I thought...well I thought this time would be different". A single tear fell as she took a sip from the glass Jack handed her.

"Hey, you weren't to know, he was very convincing none of us would have suspected him" Jack told her. "Come here" he said with outstretched arms. He held her in a friendly, almost fatherly embrace. After a few moments he pulled back slightly to gain a full view of her face. His hands cupped her cheeks.

"Sandra" She made eye contact with him before quickly looking away again. "Get over it". She laughed through her tears, remembering the first time he said those words to her.

A ringing phone interrupted them. It took Sandra a while to realise that it was her phone that was ringing.

"Detective Superintendent Sandra Pullman" she answered. "What...when...ok thank you...yeah...I'll...I'll be right there". She put down the phone and the blood drained from her face.

"My mum, she's had a stroke" Sandra told Jack, not knowing what else to say or do.

Come on, I'll drive you there" Jack said, picking up his coat. She nodded in appreciation.


	2. Chapter 2

Whilst sitting in the pub with Brian, Gerry couldn't help but feel guilty about the things he had said to Sandra about her relationship with DCI James Larson. She was not only his governor, but also his friend.

"Brian, I've been a prat haven't I?" he asked, sipping his pint.

"Yeah" he agreed.

"Cheers mate, kick a guy while he's down why don't you?" he replied, feeling worse than he did before.

"Look, if she's already left the office, go and talk to her at her place, she'll thank you for it" Brian advised him, knowing what it felt like to have said the wrong thing, after many misunderstandings with Esther.

Gerry stood and finished his pint, before making his way to the door. "Cheers mate" he said to Brian.

"Oh, Gerry" Brian called after him. "Merlot's her favourite wine". He nodded, knowing this was going to be an expensive apology.

Jack had had a long wait in the corridor of the hospital. He was worried about Sandra, he was very fond of her, but her mother too. He had known Grace for many years.

As Sandra came into vision, Jack stood. "How is she?" he asked.

"It's affected her left side, she's not making any sense though, just talking about my dad" she told him, feeling slightly reassured having seen her mother. "Anyway, thank you for waiting".

"No, not at all" he replied.

"Please will you take me home?" Sandra asked.

"Course" Jack answered, taking hold of her hand, leading her towards the exit.


	3. Chapter 3

As Jack and Sandra arrived at Sandra's house and Jack led her to her front door by her hand, there was a voice from behind them.

"Gov'ner" Gerry called in his cockney accent.

"Not now Gerry" Jack told him protectively, encouraging Sandra into the house.

"Look, I only want to apologise for earlier, I shouldn't have said what I did" He shouted as she walked into the house. "I got you a bottle of Merlot to say sorry". He held the bottle up.

Sandra stopped and turned to face Gerry. "It's ok Jack, come in Gerry, let's get that bottle open eh?" she said, smiling at his thoughtfulness.

"I'll give you two time to talk, and go and get us a take away, you eaten yet Gerry?" Jack questioned.

"Nah, Chinese would be lovely though mate" he answered. Jack left Sandra and Gerry in the living room and made his way outside. Whilst on his way to the Chinese, he phoned Brian and invited him round to Sandra's, knowing that she needed all her friends around her.

Back in the house Sandra began to tell Gerry what had happened.

"So she's alright then?" Gerry asked.

"She can't lift her left arm and her speech is slurred, she doesn't really know what's happening at all, but it could be worse apparently" she replied.

"Come here" Gerry said, standing up and moving closer to Sandra. "I know I'm an idiot at times, but you're still my mate and I do care about you". Sandra couldn't believe what she had just heard, but appreciated it anyway.

"Oh Gerry...that's so..." But Gerry cut her off.

"Say that's sweet and I'll punch your lights out" he joked.

"Yeah, you and who's army?" she joked, finally resting her head against his chest, his arms wrapping protectively around her.

As Jack and Brian arrived at Sandra's house with the Chinese, they found Sandra lying in Gerry's arms on the sofa.

"Aye aye, what's all this then?" Brian joked. Sandra took it seriously and jumped up.

"Nothing" she said, rushing into the kitchen to get some more glasses. Brian, being the only one not to have spoken to her about her mother followed her into the kitchen.

"Sorry about your mum" he said, rubbing her arm, not being one for hugs.

"Thank you Brian, and for being here tonight". she answered with a smile.

Brian following Sandra into the kitchen meant that Jack and Gerry were alone in the living room.

"You don't want to add her to your long list of conquests do you?" Jack asked, feeling like the protective father Sandra lost at the age of 14.

"I'm a naughty boy Jack, not a complete bastard" Gerry told him, insulted by the accusation. "No, she's not just a bit of naughty, I love her" His face turned scarlet with embarrassment. "I mean...I care about her, really care about her, she's special Jack" Gerry confessed.

"You hurt her and I swear to God..." Jack was cut off by Sandra and Brian coming back into the room.

"What's he done now?" Sandra teased, only hearing part of the conversation.

"Nothing" Jack answered at once, not wanting Sandra to know Gerry's true feelings.

"I mean it" Jack whispered to Gerry. "You hurt her and I will finish you".

"And who made you her dad?" Gerry questioned. "I wouldn't ever hurt her, I love her too much, and I'll just be here for her as a friend, for as long as she needs me".

"If you love them, let them go" Jack said, knowing Gerry was usually incapable of this.

"Something like that yeah" Gerry replied.

"Another woman Gerry" Brian asked, only catching something about love and letting go".

"Not this time mate" Gerry said, shocking Brian and Sandra.

The rest of the evening was much civilised with eating, drinking and talking, helping Sandra to relax about her mother.

A few hours passed and Brian and Jack being the oldest had fallen asleep, leaving Sandra and Gerry awake. It was quiet for a while, tense even, neither of them knowing what to say.

Gerry watched Sandra fall asleep on the sofa. He fetched a blanket from her bedroom to cover her with. Whilst in her room, he picked up her dressing gown and held it to his face. He breathed the smell of her in, smiling at the smell. He carefully placed it back on her bed where he found so that she would not know he had moved it. He took the time to look around her room; it was just like her, empty. She had never been one to open up about personal things, and the emptiness of her room reflected this.

After realising how long he had been in her room, he made his way back to the living room, closing the door gently behind him. He placed the blanket over her slowly, as not to wake her. Gerry smiled as he watched her, sleeping peacefully. He stroked a stray piece of hair back from her face and planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I love you" he whispered.


	4. Chapter 4

Sandra was the first to awake the next morning, to see the three men asleep in her living room. It took her a while to remember what had happened the night before, and why they were there. Then it dawned on her, her mum, and several bottles of wine.

As she prepared her breakfast, Jack and Brian awoke. Carrying the coffee into the boys, Sandra saw Gerry still asleep and decided to leave him; they had no major cases on the go and were thererfore able to have a lie in, even on a working day.

"You heard anything from the hospital?" Jack asked, startling Sandra.

"Bloody hell Jack! I didn't know you were awake" Sandra said, her heart rate returning to normal.

"Sorry" he whispered, trying not to disturb Gerry.

"No, nothing yet, I'll drop in on the way to work" she answered.

"I'll drive you" came a voice that wasn't Jack's.

"What are you lot trying to do...give me a heart attack?" Sandra exclaimed, looking round to see who had spoken. Gerry only smiled.

"So?" he asked.

"So what?" she replied.

"Did your mother never teach you to not answer a question with a question?" Gerry joked.

"And did your mother never teach you to sneak up on people?" she shot back at him.

"Will the pair of you shut up?" Jack shouted over both Gerry and Sandra.

"Oh what's this, a lover's tiff?" Brian joked sleepily, unaware of how close he was to the truth. Gerry looked at Jack. Jack put his head down. The room fell silent and the atmosphere grew.

As Sandra left the room to get dressed the phone rang. Thinking it was Strickland, she ignored, there was no real excuse for all four of them being late, apart from their hangovers, which none of them could admit to. The first time, she ignored it and the phone rang off. The second time she rejected the call, not looking at who it was from. The third time, she threw the phone.

After checking her blackberry to see who was so desperate to talk to her, she found that it was not Strickland but the hospital. She quickly pressed call back.

"Hello, it's Sandra Pullman, you phoned?"

"Yes" came the voice at the other end of the phone. "We've been trying to get hold of you, it's not good news I'm afraid".

"What's happened, is she ok?" the worried daughter asked.

"I'm very sorry to have to inform you that your mother passed away this morning, we were phoning to get you to come and say goodbye to her" the nurse replied. Sandra dropped the phone to the ground without hanging up.

"Miss Pullman, are you there...are you ok...Miss Pullman?" Sandra could hear vaguely from the phone.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" she screamed.

"It'll be a spider" Brian joked."Esther always screams like that when there's a spider".

Then there was a crash. Sandra fell to the floor, silent tears flowing. Gerry ran towards her room, Jack not far behind. They froze as they saw her lying there.

"Sandra?" Jack said quietly, moving towards her.

"She's...mum...she's...dead" Sandra sobbed. Gerry knelt down beside her shaking body, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close.

"It's ok, it's all going to be ok" Gerry whispered, stroking her hair soothingly.


	5. Chapter 5

Jack drove a distraught Sandra, a helpless and lovesick Gerry and a…Brian to the hospital so Sandra could say goodbye to her mother.

As the four people approached the chapel of rest, a nurse pulled Gerry to the side.

"It's about Grace Pullman" Paula said seriously.

"What about her? She's dead" Gerry questioned.

"She was ok Dad, there was nothing medically wrong with her, and then she was gone".

Gerry knew what his eldest daughter was implying. "You think she was murdered?" he exclaimed. Paula nodded. Gerry rubbed his face with both hands. "Now what do I do?" he asked in despair.

"I think it would be better coming from you guys dad" Paula asked, rather than stated. Gerry exhaled heavily.

He made his way out of the nurses' office and to the chapel of rest. Sandra hadn't gone in yet.

She took a deep breath and pushed the door open. Gerry held Brian and Jack by their arms to stop them from walking forward with Sandra.

"We need to talk" he stated firmly.

"Not now Gerry" Brian said.

"Yes now" Gerry barked back quietly so that Sandra did not hear.

"Paula, my daughter, Grace's nurse, she thinks that Grace didn't just die. She said she was ok and not a person who would just drop down dead." He told them.

"She suspects foul play?" Brian asked. Gerry could only nod. Silence fell upon them. However, it was short lived as a sobbing Sandra emerged from the room.

"Tonight we'll tell her" Jack mouthed, taking charge. Together they walked out of the hospital and back to the car, Sandra comforted by Jack's arms holding her.

Later that evening, Gerry, Brian and Jack prepared to tell Sandra about her mother. After several deep breaths and many exchanged glances, they approached the living room in a line, where Sandra lay on the sofa in front of the television.

Gerry turned the TV off, making Sandra jump. "We need a word" he said, looking at Jack for support. He opened his mouth but nothing came out. He started to panic, and everyone could see it, which only worried and scared Sandra. "Oh it's no good, I can't do this" he said, getting upset and frustrated. Gerry swiftly left the room.

"What's going on? What do you want to talk to me about?" Sandra asked, even more worried now, as she saw the looks on their faces.

"Paula, your mum's nurse" Jack began, taking a seat next to Sandra, holding both her hands in his. "She thinks that there may have been foul play in your mother's death"

"What are you on about" a confused Sandra asked.

"They think someone killed her" Brian sharply stated.

"BRIAN" Jack shouted, just like his mother, or Esther, would when he was in trouble.

"Sorry" he mouthed.

Sandra ran to the bathroom. Jack followed, and from outside could hear the sound of her vomiting. The shock had been too much for her to deal with.

Opening the door, Sandra asked "What's wrong with Gerry, where is he?"

Jack signalled non- verbally towards the front door. As she went over to him, she could see, he looked how she felt.

"I'm sorry" Gerry mumbled. She slid her arms around his waist, moving closer to him. She wrapped her arms tighter, and rested her head on his chest.

"Me too" she replied.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Thank you for your reviews so far! Didn't really know how this fic would work out, but I'll update for as long as you want me too. **__**3**_

The beating sun against the drawn curtains signalled the arrival of the morning. Although her eyes were shut, she knew it was time to get up. After a long and sleepless night for Sandra and her colleagues, they began to move, one by one.

The ring of the doorbell came as a surprise to Sandra. Not feeling able to face anyone, Sandra lay back down causing Gerry to promptly pull on his t-shirt and answer the door.

"Hi Gerry, how is she?" The visitor asked. Gerry opened the door wider to let him in.

"Guv'ner" Gerry called to get Sandra's attention to alert her that her visitor was entering the room. "It's for you, DAC Strickland" he said with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Gerry began walking into the living room where Sandra sat on the sofa drinking her coffee, whilst Strickland carefully closed the door, taking the opportunity to look around at her house and her belongings.

"Sandra" Strickland said sympathetically, walking into the room, only seconds behind Gerry. "I'm so terribly sorry to hear about your mother" he added, taking hold of her hand.

"Why are you here? What do you want?" Gerry barked, envious, uneasy and deeply aware of what this physical gesture could mean could lead to even.

"I just wanted to let you know, well, all of you, that I've spoken to the Commissioner, and he's agreed to let me personally, and the boys, if they're up for it, investigate your mother's death" Strickland told her. "If that's ok with you?" he asked Gerry, Jack and Brian, who all nodded simultaneously in agreement. "And you Sandra?"

"Completely. You just find the bastard who did this" she replied.

"Right then… well… I'd better start by asking you a few questions then. Did your mother have any enemies, anyone with a grudge maybe?" he asked.

"No, no one. But you're aware of my father's…how shall I put it…other life?" she asked rhetorically, knowing he already knew.

"Yes, thank you for your time. Gentleman" He said, addressing the men in the room. "If there's anything you need, just ask, as a friend" he smiled.

"Thank you" she mouthed back, unable to verbally answer. He nodded in acknowledgement of her gratitude before walking to the door that Gerry held open for him, slamming it shut behind him.

"Twat!" Gerry said to himself, looking at the closed door, as if he could see Strickland through it.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Just a short update, a better one coming soon 3**_

After the DAC had left, Sandra proceeded to get changed into her most comfortable, navy tracksuit. She dragged a brush through her hair and splashed a bit of water on her face. Sandra always looked impeccable and couldn't bear to have anyone see her otherwise. But today her appearance mattered least to the Detective Superintendent. With a cup of coffee and a DVD of choice, she cuddled back up on the sofa. Gerry, and Jack had not left Sandra's house since her mother died and Brian came round as often as he could, without leaving Esther at home alone during the night. Esther had cooked meals for Sandra and the boys and gave them to Brian to take to Sandra's when he was going round there.

As Sandra began to drift off, the boys continued to work. They decided to run the investigation from Sandra's house, as they didn't want to leave her on her own, and because she wasn't officially allowed to be part of the investigation, so this way she could unofficially participate.

Hours passed and bodies came and went. As new leads were found, one or two people would leave the house to follow up lines of enquiry, leaving one person in the house with Sandra; they hadn't seen her this down before and were worried about what she might do. Eventually Sandra got used to the noise and fell asleep, but woke after only 15 minutes.

As she woke, she heard the silence in the house; something there had not been much of recently. She called out, but no response came. She checked her phone; no missed calls, inbox empty. She wandered around the house for a bit, enjoying the peace and quiet, and then she noticed something in the garden. It was Brian, doing something that resembled Thai Chi. Years ago, when she had first met Brian, this would have deeply concerned her, but now she has learnt that it is usually better not to ask, besides, if he wasn't doing something rather strange, there was probably something wrong with him. She smiled to herself at the sight of Brian, and at the fact she had, for the first time in her life, a group of people who genuinely cared about her, and would do pretty much anything for her.


	8. Chapter 8

As the afternoon wore on and evening drew nearer, Sandra rose from the sofa that she had been lying on for most of the day, and pulled the heavy tan curtains, that hid the outside world. She could hear the news on the television and a familiar voice spoke. DAC Robert Strickland, standing downstairs in their office, told the press that there had been no further developments in the case of Grace Pullman, but they were pursuing various lines of enquiry. Sandra knew this meant that they knew something but didn't want it all over the papers, as she had often not told the press everything.

Lost in thought, Sandra did not notice Gerry bursting through the door, sighing and moaning about his long, hard day at work.

"Sandra" Gerry shouted, tapping her on the shoulder, making her jump.

"Bloody hell Gerry, you almost gave me a heart attack!" she exclaimed.

"Sorry, I was calling you for ages, you ok?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah fine" she replied. "How was work?"

"Ah the usual" he said vacantly.

"No new leads then?" she quizzed.

"What's with the twenty questions?" he shot back defensively.

"So there is something then? Look, I know you're lying, Strickland was on the news just now, and he said you were following various lines of enquiry, and you know as well as I do what that means" she stated.

Just as he was about to relay a whole load of lies, the doorbell rang. Gerry breathed a sigh of relief.

"I've not finished with you Gerald" she called after him.

As Gerry answered the door, he did not recognise the person standing on the other side. "Who are you?" he barked.

"Is Sandra in?" the man asked.

"That depends on who you are" Gerry told him.

"Gerry, who is it?" Sandra called out.

"Well that just answered my question, excuse me" the man said, barging past Gerry and walking into the living room.

"Oi, you can't just walk in here!" Gerry exclaimed angrily.

"What are you doing here?" Sandra asked surprised to see him.

"Who the bloody hell is he?" Gerry asked, feeling as though he may get more sense out of a brick wall.

"Tom, my brother" came the answer.

"You've got to go, now!" Gerry shouted, pushing him towards the door.

"GERRY!" Sandra shouted, angry and humiliated by his actions.

"I'm sorry Sandra, but it's for your own good, trust me" Gerry replied.

"I don't understand" she asked innocently.

"Trust me" he said calmly.

"So what are these new lines of enquiry Gerry, what are you not telling me?"

Gerry shook his head and walked into the kitchen, which angered Sandra even further.

"Don't you dare walk away from me when I'm speaking to you" she bellowed.

"Please, I don't want to fight, it'll all be ok" he said reassuringly.

"What will be ok?" she asked, upset at the thought of being kept in the dark by her friends and colleagues.

"I'll never let anyone hurt you" he said, pulling her into a warm embrace, feeling her shaking and falling apart within. He hated lying to her, but he hated the thought of her being completely broken even more.


	9. Chapter 9

Sandra hadn't forgotten the conversation she had had with Gerry only five minutes previously. She withdrew from her embrace with him reluctantly, as she felt safe there, in his arms.

"Ok, so tell me, what lines of enquiry?" she asked again.

"Look, it's probably nothing" he replied vaguely.

"Well, if it is nothing, you won't mind telling me will you" she told him persuasively.

"Alright, but you didn't hear it from me. Ok?" he asked. She nodded in agreement.

"Well, we believe that…" Gerry was cut off by Jack.

"Don't you bloody dare, we agreed" Jack barked.

"Agreed what? For God's sake, just tell me what's going on" Sandra said, a little firmer, a little more frustrated.

"Tell her" said Brian, walking through the door, carrying his bike and helmet in one hand and Scampi in the other. Sandra had grown fairly fond of the dog, he was a good companion when the boys were at work.

"Ok" said Gerry, holding his hands up. "We believe that Tom may have had something to do with your mother's death. He was the last one to see her alive at the hospital and he left when someone, Gawd knows who, turned the machines off".

Sandra took a deep breath and sat, well almost fell, back onto the sofa. "I didn't think he'd do it again, he's already committed one murder, but his own step mother? How could he?" she asked bewildered, devastated even, to lose two family members, in a matter of speaking.

"We'll find out what really happened, and if it's him, we'll make sure he goes down" Jack told her.

"He won't see the light of day 'til hell freezes over" Gerry corrected.

"Thanks guys" Sandra smiled.

Gerry's phone rang, causing all four of them to jump to it. Since the beginning of the investigation, they had all been on tenterhooks, wanting justice for Sandra's sake if nothing else. They all knew, and were fond of Grace, but also were all very close to Sandra, if very different ways.

As Gerry picked the phone up it read 'Strickers'. The team all knew who it was and eagerly awaited news.

"Yeah…yeah…ok then…yeah…I'll tell her…ok…bye" Gerry hung up. Sandra looked at him, to the ground and back again. She wanted to know, but didn't at the same time.

"So?" Jack questioned.

"There's a witness, an eye witness at that" Gerry said smugly. "Saw Tom go in to Grace when she was alive, heard the machines and saw him leave, no machines making noise. There was shouting, sounds of a struggle, he did it".

"No" Sandra whispered in desperation. Hearing that her mother had been murdered was bad enough, but until now she hadn't let herself believe it.

"I'm sorry Sandra" Brian said quietly, resting a comforting hand on her shoulder. Sandra smiled slightly and tilted her head to the side.

"That's all my family gone" Sandra cried.

"We're your family now" Gerry smiled.

"And I couldn't ask for better" Sandra replied.


	10. Chapter 10

She had been stuck in the house for too long and needed some fresh air. The boys had gone to work, so Sandra decided to go out. As she opened the front door she said to herself,

_I feel like one of those bastards I put away; released after being tucked up at Her Majesty's pleasure. _

Sandra hadn't left the house since her mother died, or even got dressed. The wind hit her fair face, taking her breath away. She felt unable to breathe, lost, frightened even. She clenched her fists and took deep breaths, breathing the fear away. The road seemed quiet, so she kept walking; not having a clue of where she was going. It wasn't very often that Sandra Pullman walked anywhere, she didn't even use public transport; cars and cabs were her only method of travelling around the busy streets of London.

An hour later, Sandra found herself at her mother's care home. She stood outside for a while, unsure of whether to go in or not. She went to walk away, but could feel something stopping her; it was as if her mother was pulling her back, telling her to go inside.

She spent a while sitting in her mother's room, then her phone started to vibrate. It was Gerry. Her French manicured nails dug into the reject button on her blackberry phone. Although she knew the boys would worry, she needed some time to herself; just her and her mum. She pulled the warrant card from her handbag, and took the photo she had tucked away in it. She rubbed her thumb over her mother's face, and her dad's, and mouthed 'I love you'.

The blonde looked around the room, absorbing every little detail, as if she wanted to etch it into her brain. It was just how Grace had left it; the covers slightly pulled back and the pillow at an angle. Her jewellery left on the side, and a make-up wipe resting on the edge of the bin. She smiled; her mother was never the tidiest person. Sandra didn't want to leave the room, it was as if Grace was there with her, she could feel her almost.

When she was satisfied that she could close her eyes and remember every bit of that room, Sandra stood to leave. As she approached the door, she could feel something beneath her feet. It was one of her mother's scarves. Grace always wore a scarf; regardless of her outfit and the occasion. Sandra picked it up and held it gently with both hands. She held it to her nose, breathing in the smell of her mum. She moved it slowly away from her face and rested her cheek on it. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She could almost picture cuddling her mum when she was little. She remembered it so well because it was such a rarity, she had been a daddy's girl since she was knee-high. Leaving the room, Sandra wrapped the scarf around her neck. It would only be a matter of time before one of the boys made a comment, but she vowed not to let it out of her sight.


	11. Chapter 11

"Where have you...What the hell is that?" Gerry asked in horror at the old lady scarf around Sandra's neck. She knew it was coming but still thought it was a little insensitive.

"Piss of Gerry" she snapped back angrily.

"Where have you been, we've...I've been worried about you"

"Yeah right!" she laughed sarcastically.

"Seriously Sandra, I do care about you, I do worry about you, have you not realised that yet?"

"Gerry are you-" she broke off, not knowing how to say what she thought he meant.

"I didn't want to say anything before; I didn't want you to think I was taking advantage of your vulnerability"

"But?" she questioned.

"But I think I love you"

"Oh" she replied; Gerry growing more anxious, thinking he had made a huge mistake by telling her how he felt. "About bloody time!"

Gerry smiled a little dazed, not knowing whether to laugh, keep quiet or run up to her and kiss her. The latter seemed more appealing, but was the only option he thought better of.

"Come here you big old dope!" she laughed, walking towards him.

"Oi, less of the 'old'" he joked.

The pair stood centimetres apart gazing into each other's eyes as if they had just met. Well they had, sort of. Working together day in day out was completely different. If was as though they had seen each other for the first time properly, only seconds ago.

She leant into him first. It was clumsy, awkward even, neither knowing how or where to begin. Gerry was like a girl; all nervous and dainty. Sandra took control. She found his lips with her own.

The moment they met was earth-shattering. It was hesitant and slow, but real and special at the same time. Gerry kept pulling back to check Sandra was okay, and from what he could see, she was fine. She leant back in, again and again, each time growing more passionate and confident. Hands explored each other's hair before coming down to hold hands with fingers entwined.

As both Gerry and Sandra pulled apart they felt a presence in the room. Sandra would have liked to think it was her mother, Grace, but turning around, they saw Jack and Brian smiling at them; a cheesy grin plastered on each of their faces.

"What took you so long?" Brian asked rhetorically.

"You knew?" Sandra asked.

"You were the only one who didn't know!" Brian laughed.

"They say women are meant to be intelligent; they know when a bloke likes them" Gerry began, leaving Brian to finish his sentence.

"You are meant to be the clever one; Detective Superintendent! And you were the only one who didn't know!"

"Alright, alright, I've had a lot going on" Sandra shot back defensively.

"Excuses, excuses..." Gerry sighed, placing a gentle kiss on her lips whilst cupping her cheeks in his hands. She rested her head against his chest, feeling protected and safe, whilst his arms wound around her back, pulling her into an embrace.

A chorus of "ahhhs" sounded from the doorway and Gerry only laughed.

"Oi shut it!" Sandra ordered, in her usual police woman's voice.

"She's back!" Jack said first.

"She is" Brian added.

"She is definitely back!" Gerry finished.

Laughter erupted from the living room; the room that almost felt like home to the three men. Sandra looked up whilst still resting on Gerry. 'Thanks mum...and dad'


End file.
